


Morris Come Down

by feralfansie



Category: Newsies - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:20:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28630899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/feralfansie/pseuds/feralfansie
Summary: Based off of the song Achilles Come Down by Gang Of Youths.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 16





	Morris Come Down

**Author's Note:**

> TW: suicidal thoughts, mention of abuse, alcohol

Morris Delancey was always the follower. Never the leader. Always given orders, never making ones of his own. Every time he disobeyed an order, the punishment was severe.

"Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, come down  
Won't you get up off, get up off the roof?"

It had been an order to not go to the roof. He wasn't allowed up there. And yet, here he was, watching the city beneath him. It was oddly quiet, a side of the busy city he rarely saw.

"You’re scaring us and all of us, some of us love you  
Achilles, it’s not much but there’s proof."

He didn't think anyone would care if he jumped. After all, his uncle hated him, the newsies hated him, and he didn't have any friends. The only person that slightly cared about him was his brother, Oscar, but he’d be ok without his annoying little brother dragging him down. 

"You crazy-assed cosmonaut, remember your virtue  
Redemption lies plainly in truth."

Morris never wanted to hurt the newsies. He never wanted to take those brass knuckles. But when he refused, his uncle beat him to a pulp.

Every time he saw a newsie outside of work, we tried to be nice to them. He tried to buy papers from them. They just brushed him off.

"Just humour us, Achilles, Achilles, come down  
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?"

So here he was, three in the morning, on the roof of his apartment complex. The wind felt nice in his hair. He closed his eyes as a breeze blew past him.

"Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, come down  
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?"

The moon was full and the sky was clear. It was a beautiful night, and Morris was able to point out different constellations in the sky. His mom taught them to the two brothers before she died. The memory brought tears to Morris’s eyes.

"The self is not so weightless, nor whole and unbroken  
Remember the pact of our youth."

He remembers all of the promises that he made to Oscar when they were kids. He was about to break about half of them.

"Where you go, I’m going, so jump and I’m jumping  
Since there is no me without you."

He thought about the note he had left next to Oscar’s bed. Morris prayed that Oscar wouldn't follow  
in his footsteps. Oscar actually had something to  
live for.

"Soldier on, Achilles, Achilles, come down  
Won’t you get up off, get up off the roof?"

This isn't the first time Morris had attempted a stunt like this. Oscar had stopped him every time. But now, Oscar wasn't awake. He wouldn't be able to stop this.

"Loathe the way they light candles in Rome  
But love the sweet air of the votives."

Morris didn't have much of a bucket list. He used to want to travel the world, but that idea crashed and burned once he moved in with his uncle, Wiesel.

"Hurt and grieve but don’t suffer alone  
Engage with the pain as a motive."

Oscar had always tried to get Morris to open up about his feelings. He didn't want Morris to be alone. The younger brother denied every request.

"Today of all days, see  
How the most dangerous thing is to love.  
How you will heal and you’ll rise above."

Morris had shut himself away from the world without a second thought. Everyone he had loved, he ended up losing. He didn't want to love anymore. He just wanted the pain to end.

"Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, jump now.  
You are absent of cause or excuse."

His intrusive thoughts started to kick in. He wasn't sure why he was waiting. There was a voice in the back of his head telling him to stop, but the stronger voice was the one telling him to jump.

"So self-indulgent and self-referential.  
No audience could ever want you.  
You crave the applause yet hate the attention.  
Then miss it, your act is a ruse."

Morris always lived in the shadow of his brother. He couldn't blame people for liking Oscar more. After all, he was stronger and smarter that Morris was. He didn't let his emotions get the best of him. Morris wishes he could do the same.

"It is empty, Achilles, so end it all now  
It's a pointless resistance for you."

The tears started to spill, no matter how hard he tried to stop them. He pressed the heel of his hands to his eyes, trying to stop the tears. It didn't work.

"Achilles, Achilles, just put down the bottle  
Don’t listen to what you’ve consumed."

Morris was only 14, and yet he was already stealing and consuming alcohol. There was a bottle next to him right now. He picked up his drinking habits from his dad and his uncle.

"It’s chaos, confusion and wholly unworthy  
Of feeding and it’s wholly untrue.  
You may feel no purpose nor a point for existing  
It’s all just conjecture and gloom."

Morris started to think about how his tiny world would be affected when he jumped. Oscar might be sad for a few days, but for the most part, the results would be positive. No one would miss him.

"And there may not be meaning, so find one and seize it  
Do not waste yourself on this roof."

The voice telling him to stop kept getting louder and louder. Morris just wanted it to shut up and leave him alone.

"Hear those bells ring deep in the soul.  
Chiming away for a moment.  
Feel your breath course frankly below.  
And see life as a worthy opponent."

Morris layed down on the roof. The cool material felt nice against his skin. He could hear church bells from far away signaling that it was now 4am. 

"Today of all days, see.  
How the most dangerous thing is to love.  
How you will heal and you’ll rise above.  
Crowned by an overture bold and beyond.  
Ah, it’s more courageous to overcome."

He closed his eyes again, focusing on his breath. He wanted to go in peace, so he had to stop his heart from racing.

"You want the acclaim, the mother of mothers.  
(It’s not worth it, Achilles)  
More poignant than fame or the taste of another  
(Don’t listen, Achilles)"

The two voices started fighting. Morris sat back up, clutching his head in his hands. He pleaded for the voices to stop, but to no avail.

"But be real and just jump, you dense motherfucker."

Morris stood up, waking to the edge of the roof.

"(You’re worth more, Achilles)  
You will not be more than a rat in the gutter  
(So much more than a rat)"

The newsies always called the brothers rats. He knew it was a joke, but he couldn't help but be hurt.

"You want my opinion, my opinion you’ve got  
(No one asked your opinion)  
You asked for my counsel, I gave you my thoughts  
(No one asked for your thoughts)"

The voices kept getting louder and louder. Morris crouched with a sob.

"Be done with this now and jump off the roof  
(Be done with this now and get off the roof)  
Can you hear me, Achilles? I’m talking to you."

The voice telling him to stop started to sound like Oscar. The voice telling him to jump started sounding like Crutchie, one of the newsies he was forced to hurt.

"I’m talking to you  
I’m talking to you  
I’m talking to you  
Achilles, come down  
Achilles, come down"

The voice telling him to jump started to fade away. He looked back at the city beneath him. 

"Throw yourself into the unknown  
With pace and a fury defiant  
Clothe yourself in beauty untold  
And see life as a means to a triumph"

“O-Os?” Morris choked. No response. Oscar was still asleep. 

"Today of all days, see  
How the most dangerous thing is to love  
How you will heal and you’ll rise above  
Crowned by an overture bold and beyond"

Morris took a deep breath and started to walk towards the stairs. He took one last look at the landscape, debating whether this is what he wants or not. Nodding, he starts to walk back to his apartment. He could wait a few days.

"Ah, it’s more courageous to overcome."


End file.
